


As Though Fire Burns Under Your Feet

by angelwing



Category: In the Flesh (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angel/Demon Relationship, Loss of Limbs, M/M, Slavery, Slurs, Threats of Rape/Non-Con, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-29
Updated: 2015-01-29
Packaged: 2018-03-09 13:58:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3252365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/angelwing/pseuds/angelwing
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kieren is an angel who was stolen away from Heaven and forced into Hell to be a part of the "boutiques" - stores that sell angels to demons, after which they are legally considered the property of said demon. He manages to escape, but he's left wandering Hell alone, scared and in pain, before he's found by Simon, a wingless demon who immediately takes an interest in him and offers to take care of him until he's found a way home. That is, if there is a way home...</p>
            </blockquote>





	As Though Fire Burns Under Your Feet

Everything was a blur. Screaming, laughing, jeering, spitting, scratching, clawing, hissing - the horrific sounds and sights of the past few hours bled together in his mind, and Kieren’s stomach lurched at the memories, clouded as they were. It was like trying to watch something through a demonic kaleidoscope, with terrible visions being twisted and patterned in his mind’s eye, even as he fled desperately from the scene which they had taken place.

And there was _so much pain._

Kieren didn’t know pain. He had never experienced it before, hadn’t even known his kind _could_ experience it. But the rules did not apply in this place, he thought (which was really quite impressive - he was having trouble actually forming coherent thoughts at the moment). He didn’t know it was possible for wings to grow tired. He had never experienced the ache that came along with exhaustion and panic. His chest felt heavy, his limbs somehow managed to be simultaneously numb and filled with agonizing pain, his lips felt dry and cracked.

His wings burned where hot metal had clamped down on them, keeping them from moving. The scratch marks on his legs, where sharp claws had sunk into soft, never-before-threatened flesh as he had made his desperate escape, stung terribly. Everything he touched felt rough, like broken glass. Even the grass felt sharp and hot against his soft feet.

So he flew. The clouds, he learned soon, were hot and thick and he couldn’t breathe when he flew threw them. Gusts of fire-hot wind would occasionally blow past, leaving light red burns on his skin. He wished he had clothing, had any form of protection. He wished he could walk, so he could fold his wings around and cover himself. He wished the pain would stop and life would go back to as it had been only hours before.

Kieren wished for a lot of things he knew he was not going to be getting anytime soon.

But he refused to give up hope. He wasn’t the first angel to have been dragged into Hell, and he wouldn’t be the last. He had met others before, who spoke of this place (and their descriptions didn’t nearly do this place justice), but he didn’t know how they has escaped. But they had. They definitely had. And if they could do it, so could he.

It was nothing but that thin, thin layer of hope that kept Kieren flying. He had to get far away. He didn’t care where he ended up, so long as it wasn’t anywhere near where he had come from. His wings ached, begging for a break. He had never experienced this before, this desperation to stop. He didn’t know it was possible, for his body to just shut down like this, for exhaustion to be so intense that it felt like one more wing beat and he would collapse.

And he did collapse. His wings throbbed and burned and ached and every other word his tired mind could possibly think of to describe pain. They couldn’t carry him any longer. Not now. He didn’t know how far he had traveled, or where he was, or how _big_ this place was. But he had to be far enough. He _had_ to be.

Hoping to soften his landing, Kieren allowed his wings to angle downwards, allowed himself to fall at an angle to the surface. He was too exhausted to be aware of his surroundings. He was too tired to acknowledge where he was, to see the world around him. The ground burned beneath his fragile body but he didn’t care anymore. His wings twitched, as if unable to quite believe they were finally being given a break, unable to actually allow themselves to go still. But they did, finally, and the pain grew dull, spreading all over but never becoming intense, not sharp or hot or stinging anymore, just _aching_.

As Kieren passed out, he prayed to every divinity he could possibly think of that he would wake up again, and that the pain he felt now would be gone.

xxx

Kieren did wake up, and it was to the feeling of something nudging his shoulder. It was a gentle touch, compared to the terrible agony of before, but it still caused pain to pulse there, exhausted limbs crying out at the feeling of being disturbed. He opened his eyes, and found himself staring at a leg. His eyes wandered up, traveling up the leg, which was connected to a body, and to the head that the body belonged to.

The being standing there looked human. Like a man. He had dark hair and a curious expression on his face. Kieren blinked, and then heat rose on his cheeks as the human-looking man’s eyes met his own. He gave him a small smile, and Kieren was almost certain he was being mocked, and he felt his shoulder be nudged again as the man kicked him gently.

“What exactly are you doing out here?” the human-looking man asked now. Kieren knew he was a demon, knew that _everyone_ here, if they weren’t burning for eternity, was a demon. But he didn’t want to think that. He didn’t want to label this man as such, because that made him frightening, and Kieren was trying desperately to convince himself that maybe, maybe, this man did not have malicious intent. Besides, something about him was off. He did not look exactly like a demon. Kieren’s mind, in the exhausted state that it was, could not figure out what it was.

Kieren didn’t even realize he hadn’t responded until he was being kicked out of his thoughts again. “I, I… I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?” He sounded unconvinced, and he knelt down. “Angels don’t just pop up naked on the ground.” He was gazing at him, and Kieren could see now that he had light blue eyes.

Well, what the hell? Kieren thought. He had nothing to lose. He couldn’t fight back now anyway. He might as well tell the truth. “I escaped a boutique.” he said quietly. “They- They freed my wings to- to clip them, and I… flew away…” Kieren’s voice trembled as he spoke, the panic he had felt during it all coming back as he remembered everything, as he relived it all in his mind.

The man’s eyebrows rose curiously at that. “You escaped a boutique?” he repeated. Kieren only vaguely noticed the Irish accent he spoke in. “I haven’t heard of an angel doing that before.” He hummed, and then he stared for a long, long time. Kieren’s face went red again and he looked away, not liking the other’s gaze on him. Not like this, naked and hurt and weak. He didn’t know what it meant, and he feared the worst. But then he stood up, holding a hand out. “My name is Simon.”

Kieren stared at the hand, hesitant. Was he going to take him back to the boutique? Or maybe kill him here. Or worse.. Swallowing hard, he eventually took Simon’s hand in his own, and felt himself be gently pulled up, onto his feet. Dull pain caused his knees to ache and tremble a bit, and he took a shaky step forward, his fingers finding Simon’s shirt, which he gripped to in order to steady himself.

“You okay?”

Kieren looked up at Simon’s face. He was still mostly expressionless, but his eyes were staring straight into him, and Kieren looked down, eyes resting just beneath Simon’s eyes in order to avoid meeting them directly. “Sorry,” he mumbled quietly, letting go. “I… I spent a good portion of yesterday… running away…”

Simon nodded. “My home isn’t far from here, you can come with me.” Noticing Kieren’s hesitance, he added, “I don’t agree with the boutiques, okay? I won’t send you back or anything.” He gave what almost, almost looked like a smile, and Kieren realized that, in the state he was in, he had no choice. If he didn’t go with Simon, all he would be doing was leaving himself out in the open for some other, much less gentle demon to come along and… have their way with him.

Speaking of which...

“I haven’t got any clothes on.” Kieren said now as he allowed Simon to lead him forward. He would have used his wings to cover himself, but they ached like nothing he had ever felt before, and he could barely move them. In Heaven, clothing wasn’t particularly a necessity, and he wouldn’t have felt nearly as self conscious about this, but it was different here. A naked angel in the middle of Hell would only lead to… well, things that certainly wouldn’t be allowed in Heaven.

“No one will hurt an angel so long as he’s with a demon. At least in these corners, we respect each other’s property.”

Kieren swallowed. “So we really are considered property here?”

“Since the boutiques became legal, yes.” Simon nodded, tone free of any emotion, and Kieren decided it was best to leave this conversation unfinished. They walked, slowly at first due to Kieren’s tired state, towards what Kieren realized was a small town. It didn’t look anything like the hellhole he had been stuck in before.

Still, it was clearly Hell. The sky above them was red, and the sandy ground was hot under Kieren’s feet (still, he was thankful for the fact that the sharp, painful grass did not grow here). “Where are we?”

“The outer parts of Hell, near purgatory.” Simon explained. “I think you’ll find things a little better here. The traveling boutiques never bother to come out this far and we have enough self-respect not to make jokes of ourselves, for the most part.” He looked around as they entered the town. A handful of demons could be seen, some talking to each other, some walking down the streets, and some, Kieren noticed bashfully, staring straight at them. “That being said, you still better be careful. An angel with unclipped wings is going to stir some attention.”

Kieren nodded at that, taking a step closer to Simon. Trying desperately to ignore the eyes of the other demons, he focused his attention on Simon, who was walking ahead of him, leading him through the town and still pulling him along by the hand. Kieren’s eyes traveled over the back of his head and then down, and when they reached his shoulders, he frowned. There were patches on his shirt, seemingly hand-sewn, just below each shoulder.

Kieren was suddenly very aware of his aching wings once more, and he let out a soft little gasp, realizing now why he had taken Simon for a human rather than a demon upon their initial meeting.

“You haven’t got any wings…”

Simon froze for a very, very short moment. His back stiffened and he took a deep breath, and then he walked on. Kieren nearly missed the small nod he gave. “That’s right,” he said quietly. “Lost them a few years back. Not important.”

Kieren let him leave it at that. He had been kind enough (well, assuming he didn’t have some ulterior motive to all of this - he was trying not to think about that possibility), he didn’t want to force him into some awkward conversation regarding what could very well have been an incredibly traumatic event. His own wings twitched weakly on his back and he winced with pain. They were so sore… 

Soon, they came to a small house. It was dark in color and the curtains were drawn over the two visible windows. Simon walked to the door and pulled a key from his pocket, unlocking and opening the door before motioning for Kieren to enter. After he was inside, Simon followed, shutting the door as he said, “I never actually caught your name.”

Kieren’s eyebrows rose. “Oh, right! Uh, Kieren. My name is Kieren.” He gave, for the first time since he had wound up here, a small smile. Simon stared at him for a moment, and Kieren’s expression fell again, face feeling hot. “Is there anywhere for me to lay down?” he asked softly.

Simon nodded. “Follow me,” He turned down the hallway, and Kieren followed him as they reached a large room with a single bed, a cabinet, and a closet. “Here, this is the guest room.” He nodded towards the bed, and Kieren tried to imagine why a demon would ever have guests spend the night. “Feel free to rest. I have some spare clothing you can borrow in the closet, too.” Kieren entered warily, looking around before walking to the bed and sitting down. He wasn’t sure if it was as soft as he felt it was, or if he was just desperate for something even semi-comforting. He lay down, humming happily and letting his eyes slip shut for a moment before he opened them to look over to Simon in the doorway again.

“Why are you doing this for me?” he asked softly. His wings unfurled and he stretched them, running a finger through the soft feathers of his right wing as he lay there. “I mean, it’s not exactly very _demon-y_ , is it? To save an angel’s life?”

Simon shrugged, looking down, before chuckling grimly. “It’s not very _demon-y_ to be wingless, either. I guess I like going against the norm.” He smiled a bit, and shut the door halfway. “Get some rest. I’ll be here when you wake up.” The door shut, and Kieren lay there, eyes still on the door for a short while, before crawling up to the head of the bed, laying his head back against the pillows.

Eyes shutting once more, Kieren lay there, mind racing and body still aching. But he felt safe here. He would get back to Heaven. Breathing out a soft sigh, he turned over onto his side and soon drifted off into sleep.

xxx

Kieren’s sleep was uneasy. He dreamt of being held down, of being burned in huge flames, of being stripped naked and choked. Laughter and screams twisted together into one loud, hellish noise that echoed through his head. Blood soaked the ground, limbs were torn, feathers ripped from flesh. And dark, dark blue eyes, gazing at him, laughing at him, as he was totally and completely destroyed.

When he woke up, it was with a strangled scream, eyes going wide as he jumped up in his bed, clutching the sheets and trembling.

Simon was in the room before he could even remember where he was. He had a concerned look on his face, and he walked hurriedly to Kieren’s side, sitting down beside him on the bed. Instinctively, Kieren reached for him, fingers clutching his shirt, gripping to him and trembling. The visions in his dreams remained in his mind, as if scratched into him, and he found himself letting out a soft, weak sob.

After a moment, Simon’s hands found his wings, and he ran his fingers over the feathers lightly. They twitched a bit, but Kieren did not stop crying. Rather, he pressed his forehead to Simon’s chest now, shaking almost violently.

Simon let out a soft “Shh,” and a murmur of what almost sounded like “It’s alright,” under his breath as his touches became a bit rougher, rubbing and massaging the feathered wings under his hands now. Simon’s hands were warm, and Kieren wondered if all demons were warm to the touch. He traced light patterns over the wings, fingers running first in circular motions, then in what felt like swirls, over the feathers, and Kieren’s breathing began to even out.

It was not until Kieren was once again fully in control of his body that he breathed out, “I had… really… really bad nightmares…” He loosened his grip from Simon’s shirt, but did not let go entirely.

Simon sighed. “You were stolen away from home and nearly sold into slavery. I’d be shaken too.” He continued to gently rub Kieren’s wings, and hummed curiously as his fingers slid under the feathers, skimming over the soft down beneath. Kieren shivered, unused to anyone touching there. “I’ve never seen an angel with full wings. They clip them once they’re brought to boutiques.”

Kieren nodded, shivering again, but this time at the thought of such a thing nearly happening to him. “Our purity is tied to our wings,” he explained quietly. “If we lose them, we can’t get back to Heaven.” There was silence after that, and Kieren let go of Simon’s shirt with one hand to reach around, placing a hand below Simon’s left shoulder, where his wing should have protruded. He placed his hand over the spot. There was a small bump there, under the fabric.

“Demons aren’t like that, if you’re wondering.” Simon said, back shifting uncomfortably under Kieren’s hand. “Our wings help us travel, but we don’t rely on them for anything more than that.” Kieren was almost certain he detected a hint of defensiveness in his tone. He smiled.

“Well, to tell you the truth, your lack of wings made me a lot more inclined to trust you.” He sighed, pulling away from Simon now, not wanting things to grow awkward. Simon reluctantly pulled his hands away from the other’s wings, and let them rest in his lap.

After another brief moment of silence, Simon managed out the words, “I’ve never left Hell. The only angels I’ve seen are the ones lucky enough to’ve survived being bought from boutiques. I didn’t…” He swallowed. “I didn’t realize they looked so… beautiful. With your wings and… everything…” He sighed, shaking his head and chuckling with what sounded like embarrassment.

Kieren was looking away now, face tinted pink. He bit his lip, not sure what to say. “Well, um. I didn’t… think demons could be anything but… not good.” He admitted with a weak chuckle. “But I mean, unless this is all an elaborate trick, I s’pose you’ve proven me wrong.” He turned back around to face Simon once more.

And suddenly he was caught in a kiss.

Eyes going wide, Kieren let out a soft “mmf!” and tensed up, not pulling away at first. His wings flapped with surprise and if his cheeks had been pink before, they were beet red now. As soon as he was capable, he was pulling away, a look of shock on his face. “Wh- What was- I- I can’t-” He reached up, touching his own mouth and staring with wide eyes.

Simon looked equally shocked, as if he _hadn’t_ been the one to have initiated that. He looked away, and Kieren was vaguely aware of the fact that the demon was shaking a bit. “I’m sorry.” he said softly. “I, I didn’t… mean… I’m sorry.”

“I can’t do that, Simon.” Kieren’s voice was weak. “I’m an angel. We can’t do that sort of thing. Especially not with…” He swallowed hard. “I’m a male angel and you’re a male demon. You do… realize… that that’s not okay for me to do, right?” He shifted uncomfortably. Simon’s mouth had been even warmer than his hands… “I’m sorry too, I just… you can’t just… do that…”

Simon nodded. “I’m sorry,” he said for a third time. “I didn’t… I don’t know what the hell I was trying to do.” He sighed and stood up. “Try to go back to sleep, okay? You weren’t out for that long, you probably still need to rest. I can make something to eat if you feel up to it, too.”

Then he was leaving, and Kieren sighed, laying back down. Once more, his fingers moved to his mouth, running over his lips gently. He lay there, unsure of what to do or say, before, hesitantly, getting up and walking to the closet. He couldn’t sleep anymore. Not after all of that…

Finding the spare clothes Simon had mentioned, he awkwardly changed into them, relieved to finally have something on him. These clothes didn’t have sown-over wing holes, so he was able to fit into them relatively easily, although they were a bit big. After this, he exited the room, and found Simon in the living room, reading.

“You said you could make something to eat?” he asked. Simon jumped a bit, having not noticed Kieren before and clearly being surprised to see him already up. Kieren smiled. “We don’t eat in Heaven. What do demons eat?” He was trying to be casual, to make their interactions feel normal, even after what had just taken place.

Simon stared at Kieren, not understanding, but after a moment he replied, “Er, it depends. We, uh… well, different species of us eat different things. We don’t have to eat at all. But, er, I have… human food, if you’d want that? Pasta, toast, fruit… Whatever you want.”

“Anything,” Kieren shrugged awkwardly, only having a vague idea of what most of those things even were. He looked around the interior of the house. Hell wasn’t that bad if you were a demon, he supposed. After all, they weren’t here for eternal damnation. They were just doing their jobs. “Er… pasta?”

Simon nodded and stood up. He took another look at Kieren, seemingly admiring him, and Kieren was very aware of the fact that he was wearing the demon’s clothes. He took a step back, praying that he would not blush now. He had to stay pure if he was going to go back to Heaven soon.

Oh! Speaking of which…

“Simon,” he called softly as he followed him out of the living room and into the kitchen. “Is there, er… do you know how to go back to Heaven?” He swallowed. “I mean… I… I want to get back as soon as I can. The others are probably worried about me.” No, worse than that, he thought. They probably had given up on him. Angels so rarely made it out of here… They probably never thought they would see him again.

He had to prove them wrong.

Simon dropped what he was doing (rummaging through his pantry) at that. He turned, eyeing Kieren curiously for a moment. “A way back to Heaven?” he shook his head. “I don’t know. Like I said, I’ve never even left Hell. I know others who do, but they only leave to travel to Earth, not to Heaven. I… I don’t know.”

Kieren’s heart sank. So Simon couldn’t help with this. Oh well… He could find other people to help him. Simon was nice, so others would be too, right? Simon wasn’t the only nice demon in all of hell. He couldn’t be. “That’s alright,” he said. “I’ll figure it out.”

He sat down at the dining room table. His body was still sore, although it was feeling better now. He could move again without that terrible aching - now only a dull stiffness had taken its place, which was definitely preferable. He watched Simon as he began to boil water.

“You don’t have to go through all this trouble for me,” Kieren said. “Like I said, I haven’t even eaten before. Angels don’t have to eat, and to keep ourselves from being gluttonous, we just… don’t keep food at all. So really, you don’t have to.”

Simon shook his head. “That’s silly. Food is good. It gives humans life. It gives us comfort and happiness. You shouldn’t be punished for other angels’ lack of self control.” Kieren wasn’t sure how he felt about this, but he did not respond. Instead, he went quiet, watching with interest as Simon cooked for him.

xxx

Kieren decided he liked eating. A lot. And he could see why the other angels would be so tempted with gluttony. Simon was kind enough to let him eat as much as he wanted, much more than Simon ate himself, only stopping occasionally when Simon stared for too long. He had a habit of staring, and Kieren wasn’t sure what to make of it.

That night, Kieren went back to the guest room, promising Simon he would be okay this time. Although he had napped earlier, he was still worn out, and sleep came easily.

So did the nightmares.

Kieren was woken by Simon only a few hours after laying down, and was in just as bad a state as he had been in the first time, trembling and on the verge of tears. Ignoring Kieren’s earlier warnings, Simon soothed Kieren with a few kisses to the head, reasoning that this was different than his previous actions, and when Kieren began to cry, he lay down with him, pulling him against him and playing with his wings as he had before. Kieren remained in the same state for awhile, trembling and crying, before slowly calming down, and falling back to sleep against Simon’s chest without another word.

When Kieren woke up, he was still snuggled up against Simon, the first thought in his head being wondering what the warmth pressed against him was. Upon opening his eyes, his face turned a deep red, but he didn’t pull away. This wasn’t anything bad, he told himself. Simon was just trying to comfort him…

Still, when Simon woke up, he immediately apologized. Kieren smiled. “It’s alright,” he said quietly. “I probably wouldn’t have slept at all last night if you hadn’t come in. Thanks.” He sat up, stretching and yawning, wings unfurling and then curling back in against his back. Simon watched them with awe before sitting up beside him.

“I need to go out today,” Simon said. “But don’t worry, alright? It’s just a few quick things. Standard demonic duties.”

“Tormenting the living and making sure the unrepentant suffer eternal agony?” Kieren asked with a small smirk. Simon blinked, not expecting the sarcasm, but took it as a good sign - if Kieren had the energy to make snarky remarks, he was feeling better.

A small, bewildered smile played over Simon’s lips. “Something like that. I won’t be gone long, though. I was actually heading home yesterday when I saw you, so… I should be back just after lunch. You’re welcome to anything in the pantry.” He thought for a moment. “Ah, don’t worry about anyone trying to hurt you. Like I said before, we respect property here. The other demons most likely assume I bought you from a boutique. They wouldn’t dare lay a finger on you while you’re in here.”

Kieren nodded, forcing himself to trust Simon. He wouldn’t leave him alone if he thought he wasn’t safe, he told himself. He could handle a day here alone. “Alright, got it. You go do your sinning and I’ll stay here.” He smiled.

Simon left about half an hour later, leaving Kieren alone. Kieren spent a good portion of the morning rummaging through Simon’s belongings. He didn’t have much, really. Although his book collection was outstanding, it was full of boring things Kieren would never be interested in reading (and he didn’t know demons were even allowed to read the Bible). So he settled on raiding the kitchen. There were all sorts of things here that he had never even heard of. He found that he quite liked potato chips, and he brought a bag of those to the living room as he once more began to search around for things to do.

At around noon, there was a knock at the door.

“Simon?” Kieren called. He was in the living room, skimming over a particularly long book on something religious that he couldn’t quite understand and couldn’t possibly figure out Simon’s need for. He stood now, leaving his snack food and book on the couch as he walked to the door. There was another knock, this one rougher. “Simon…?” Kieren asked again, voice quieter this time.

Very, very hesitantly, he opened the door, and immediately, he went pale, eyes widening with horror.

Dark blue eyes. Dark, feathered, raven wings. The shadow of a beard. A demon stood, and Kieren recognized him instantly. The man chuckled, leaning in the doorway, watching Kieren with a look in his eyes that the angel could not read, and definitely did not want to read. “You flew pretty far. Didn’t think ye had it in you. Hafta admit, I’m impressed.”

“Y- You’re Ga- The demon wh-” Kieren could not think. Fear wracked his body, and he suddenly regretted ever trying to eat, because he felt like throwing up everything. He took a step back, but did not try to flee, knew it was worthless to try. He was so scared, but there was nothing he could do. “ _Gary_ …”

“Angels don’t fucking escape.” the demon said, reaching forward and grabbing Kieren’s wrist. Instinctively, Kieren pulled away, desperately trying to yank free. When Gary came closer, Kieren attempted to kick him, but was stopped when his leg was grabbed and he was thrown back, falling over now. “Where the hell’d you think you’d go? Back to Heaven? Heaven doesn’t want shit like you anyway. There’s a reason you were so easy to grab in the first place.”

Kieren’s brow furrowed. “What does _that_ mean?” he snapped. He tried to get up, but Gary stepped on him, stomping down. Kieren groaned out, feeling and hearing something crack as terrible pain split through his side.

“You were a rebellious faggot of an angel anyway, weren’t ya? Always eyeing the pretty boys like a goddamn sinner, eh? The only good thing you have going for you is yer pretty face.” Gary smiled. “Which comes in handy at the boutique. Less of a chance that you’ll be bought fer food. It’d be a waste of a body like yours.” Kieren’s heart rate picked up at the threat and he shook his head, squirming beneath the demon’s foot, and he stomped down again. Kieren let out a sob.

Gary continued talking. “If yer really lucky, you might even be kept as a pet. You’d like that, wouldn’t ya? A faggot like you, sucking dick both metaphorically and literally. Better than being eaten or kept as a punch bag or other shit that the less pretty angels have to deal with. Count yerself lucky.” He kicked Kieren in the gut, leaving him winded and sobbing, before pulling rope from his back pocket, which he used to tie his wings together. “Not getting out of here this time. Dunno who was daft enough to let go you like that. But I’ll make this quick and easy this time.” He looked around. “But not here. C’mon.”

He grabbed Kieren by the hair and yanked him upwards. “Get up, yer coming with me.” Kieren stumbled to his feet, walking forward weakly. The demon took another rope, tied this one tight around Kieren’s neck, and used it to pull him forward, out of the house and into the streets. “See, here’s the great thing about Hell. On one hand, the inhabitants here typically respect each other enough not to steal each other’s shit. But on the other hand, if one of us does pull a dick move, yer not gonna see anyone trying to stop it.”

Kieren’s hope of rescue successfully dashed, he let out a weak sob, being tugged along by the rope around his neck. He was led to another house, this one a few blocks away, large and looming over him, dark and empty. “Come on, then, get inside.”

Having no choice but to do as told, Kieren entered, walking into the house. It was clearly uninhabited, rotting and falling apart from the inside. Large holes could be seen on the walls and the floor creaked beneath their feet. A sharp pain still throbbed in Kieren’s side, but there was nothing he could do about that now.

In the center of the empty house, the demon stopped him. He turned, shoving Kieren over, letting him fall to the ground. “On your knees,” he ordered. Kieren hastily did just that, not wanting to be kicked again. Gary walked around behind him, undoing the rope around both wings and wrapping it tightly around only the right one. The circulation was cut off from it and he felt it throb painfully, desperately needing to be free of the rope that was absolutely suffocating it.

Kieren did not even see the knife pulled from Gary’s pocket. He didn’t see the triumphant smirk in the demon’s eyes, and he could barely feel the way his fingers gently ran over the wing, just barely ghosting over the feathers. And he remembered, briefly, another demon’s fingers, gentle and calming, a motion so similar but in such a very, very different circumstance...

Kieren very, very much felt what came next.

Agony.

Kieren could not think. He could not see, or hear. Everything was red. Everything was pain, and he could not comprehend it. There was a loud sound that resembled screaming, but broken and weak, and Kieren could not even think clearly enough to realize that it was his own voice. His throat was torn as he let out sobs that he could not even process were his own. His other wing, the wing still attached to his body, flapped desperately, hysterically, as he trembled and sobbed until no sound could leave his throat anymore.

He felt something hit the ground. He didn’t dare look back to see what it was, couldn’t bring himself to look even if he did have the capability right now. Gary said something, but he didn’t know what it was. He didn’t remember throwing up...

And he waited, even through the pain, as blinding as it was, as incapable of functioning as it made him, for more to come. Because the other wing was still flapping, every nerve in his body begging for him to fly away. But he couldn’t. He couldn’t ever again. He tried to tell himself that, tried to shove his instinct down with the truth, as hard to swallow as it was. He couldn’t fly away no matter how hard that wing flapped, because the other one would never flap again…

And why was it still flapping?

How much time passed before Kieren decided to turn around and look, he wasn’t sure, but when he did, he gasped, eyes going wide.

Four things lay on the floor behind him.

Directly behind him was a wing ( _his wing_ , he thought, but he couldn’t bring himself to accept it, not now). A further ways away was a body. Beside that, a head. And beside that, another body, this one with the head attached, in one piece save for a nasty cut down from the top of his chest to his ribs. But his chest was rising and falling slowly, and he was stirring just a bit, and Kieren felt an emotion he could not quite process rush through him as he crawled over.

Every movement brought agony to his back, but he ignored it, crawling forward until he was leaning over Simon’s unconscious body. He gently took hold of his shoulder, shaking him. “Simon?” he asked, voice so hoarse he himself could barely hear it. “Simon…?”

Light blue eyes opened.

“Kieren,” Simon said the other’s name with nothing but relief, and he reached out, taking his face in his hand and gently stroking his cheek. “I… I got home and you were gone. And I heard screaming…” He took in a shaky breath, his other hand moving to touch the top of the long cut on his own chest. “Are you okay?”

Kieren did not have to answer. Simon answered his own question as his eyes traveled upwards - they stared, fixated on the single wing now on Kieren’s back. And then they wandered over the room until they landed on the other wing, laying there, motionless and so, so bloody. Kieren did not even realize he was crying until he noticed tears fall and hit Simon’s forehead.

“I can’t go back now.” Kieren said quietly.

“You don’t know that.” Simon replied. With a soft groan he forced himself to sit up a bit, the cut clearly causing him pain that he attempted to ignore for Kieren’s sake. Kieren had a look of doubt, if not absolute hopelessness, on his face, and Simon smiled a bit. “If you can’t go home, you’re welcome to stay with me for as long as you need.”

“What the hell am I?” Kieren asked, seemingly ignoring Simon’s words. “If I can’t go back to Heaven. If I only have one fucking wing. What the fuck am I supposed to do?” He moved forward, closer to Simon, to press his face into his shoulder.

Simon sighed. “I don’t know.” he said quietly. Then, he gently pushed Kieren away. The angel frowned, not understanding the reason for this, before Simon turned around. He took his shirt off (it was torn up now anyway), leaving his back exposed for the other. Kieren’s eyebrows rose and his mouth opened a bit, staring.

Where wings should have been, two stumps, clearly crudely severed, remained. Kieren could not imagine what could have happened, but he felt his heart ache. He could practically feel it, the pain of his own severed wing still fresh in his mind and still burning terribly on his back. And he swallowed hard, unable to say a word.

Simon turned back around to face Kieren now. “When I first saw you, I thought you were beautiful. Your beauty was… ethereal. I assumed it had to do with being an angel. Your wings - I told you, I had never seen an angel without their wings clipped before. But…” He shook his head. “I was wrong. Here you are - here we are - both of our wings fucked up beyond repair. And you’re just as beautiful as you were before.”

Kieren didn’t know what to do with this. He stared, silent still and utterly overwhelmed, watching Simon’s face, as if expecting something, but not saying a word. Then he leaned forward, eyes never leaving Simon’s, as he pressed his lips to the demon’s.

Simon’s hands immediately moved up to take hold of Kieren’s face, stroking his cheeks as he kissed back gently. Kieren hummed, and he didn’t care about anything else. Not about the purity or the world he had come from. Not about Gary, or the angels he had grown up with. Not his wings, the one on the ground or the one still attached to his back. None of it mattered. He choked back a sob, although he was not entirely sure why he was crying again in the first place, and kept his mouth pressed to Simon’s long after they had finished kissing, content with just feeling the warmth of his lips and mouth against his own.

Then Simon stood, wincing at the pain that the cut on his chest caused him, and held out a hand for Kieren. “Come back with me, alright? We’ll figure something out.”

Kieren hesitated for a moment, eyeing Simon’s hand, before nodding and taking it in his own, allowing himself to be pulled up onto his feet. And then Simon kissed him again, gently, squeezing his hand and pulling him closer, and for a split second, Kieren couldn’t remember if he was in Heaven or Hell.

-end

**Author's Note:**

> Mm, well, there you go! This was fun to write - I started it at around 4 pm, and finished it at about 1 in the morning, so it was an all-evening project and sort of an excuse to procrastinate on my main, multi-chap fic OTL
> 
> Like I said, I really enjoyed writing it, although I'm not sure how it sounds to others! Hopefully it's at least enjoyable. It's meant to be a oneshot, although I realize it's left rather open-ended, and it's on the long side. Also, like I just said, this was finished at 1 in the morning, and I skimmed through it to proofread, so if there are any errors I'm super sorry. I'll fix them later if I notice any bad ones!
> 
> But yeah, enjoy!! I'm still trying to get the hang of the characters tbh but I felt like some scenes finally started to bring them to life the way I wanted, which is exciting!


End file.
